Tunnels 04, Closer

anything... not a thing."
    "The only life forms round here are those loathsome scavengers," Dr. Burrows said, waving his hand at the vultures. "And correct me if I'm wrong, but we're not carrion yet, so they don't pose any sort of threat to us." He bent to pick up a stick and tossed it in the direction of the birds. It missed them by a mile, tumbling into the undergrowth beside the branches.
    Bartleby was the only one who noticed.
    A pair of eyes flashed in alarm, and what appeared to be a small tree moved swiftly to the side to avoid the stick as it landed. But Bartleby didn't react, because it made absolutely no sense to him. While he'd seen the movement, there was no scent he could discern. Nothing that smelt even remotely like an animal -- or a human -- for that matter.

Part Two
    Contact

14

    A low tent had been erected on the edge of the runway, where gusts of wind stirred up swirling dust devils. As a small convoy of angular coaches with blacked-out windows drew up, the doors flew open and the brigade of Limiters disembarked. Depositing their rucksacks and equipment at the entrance to the tent, they began to file inside. The dog handlers amongst them were restraining their growling stalkers, which clearly preferred the look of the wide open space after being cooped up for so long.
    Without any direction from their superiors, the Limiters began to fill the seats on one side of the tent. The seats on the other side were already occupied by New Germanian troops. There was a terse silence under the flapping canvas as these youthful men with blond crew cuts and pristine combats eyed their opposite numbers. The grizzled Limiters, many of them veterans with the scars to prove it, exhibited no such interest, instead facing straight ahead as they waited for the briefing to start.
    Outside the tent, a black limousine under military escort screeched to a halt. Dressed in combats, the Rebecca twins emerged from it. They were followed by the Limiter General, who hung back for a moment to take in the rank of helicopters parked on the runway. 'FA223s. Also known as the Drache Angelis," he said, as he looked at the nearest one, examining the peculiar arrangement of twin rotors mounted either side of what appeared to be little more than a standard aircraft fuselage.
    The Limiter General then peered at the hangars beyond the helicopters, in which various aircraft were visible. Many he didn't recognize, but then his gaze fell on a pair of tan-colored aeroplanes. "ME263s!" he exclaimed, as he realized what the stubby-looking aircraft with swept-back wings were.
    Having just arrived in another limousine, the Chancellor happened to overhear the Styx. "Yes, our fighter-interceptors. Jet-powered," he announced proudly. "We continued their development after we arrived here. Fastest, most maneuverable aircraft in the skies," he boasted.
    "Maybe down here. Things have moved back in the real world," the Limiter General replied. The he continued toward the rear of the tent, leaving the Chancellor looking most unhappy.
    As the Limiter General took a seat next to his men in the first row, the Rebecca twins remained at the front of the tent, where a campaign table and an easel had been set up.
    The Chancellor bumbled in. With a sideways glance at the massed Limiters, he stopped before the Styx girls. Not being able to tell which of the identical twins he'd met before, he hesitated, giving each of them a small nod. Then, so as not to look a complete idiot in front of the audience, he went for broke and made his choice, correctly picking Rebecca One. "Very good to make your acquaintance, my young lady. And how are you feeling today?" he asked her with forced joviality.
    She gave the slightest shake of her head to show she wasn't at all pleased with this form of address.
    "I must say you've astounded my doctors," the Chancellor added quickly, realizing he'd said the wrong thing. "You healed much more quickly than they ever expected -- much faster than most people."
    Rebecca One gave a dry smile. "I'm a Styx," she said. "We're not most people ."
    "No, no, of course, not," the Chancellor gabbled. It was evident that he was highly uncomfortable in the girls' presence and was going to extract himself from the situation at the first opportunity he could. "I'd like to introduce --" he began to say.
    All of a sudden there was a scuffling noise from the back of the tent, and four New Germanian soldiers appeared with a dark form between them. It had